(Note: This picture was on Huffington Post and I don't know where it came from or if it's a file photo or whatever, but it aptly describes the current situation so I'm using it)
As of today, the negotiations to raise the debt ceiling have yielded no results.
The 'tea party' wing of the Republican party has taken over and they're acting like bullies.
Eric Cantor, Grover Norquist, John Boehner, and the rest of the bully brigade (including my congressman Dave Reichert, I bet) have said they'll only vote to raise the debt ceiling if there is an equal amount of spending cuts to offset the increase. (Note: Grover Norquist is not in Congress; he's a tax activist who gets elected officials to sign a no tax pledge)
Obama has agreed to up to 3 trillion in spending cuts, but he recognizes that most of the cuts the right-wing proposes will adversely affect lower and middle class Americans.
Obama would like to see the wealthy and upper classes do their part as well. Obama (and I) would like to eliminate tax loopholes that the wealthy receive (apparently wealthy people get some kind of tax break for using corporate jets?). And not just the wealthy - the corporate wealth should be taxed more fairly. Is it fair that the oil companies are making billions of dollars in profit, but don't pay very much tax?
The right wing says closing loopholes in the tax code is essentially increasing tax.
And, they 'draw the line in the sand' at increasing taxes.
They say, in the middle of an economic crisis that involves so much unemployment you don't increase taxes on the wealthy because they're the job creators of the economy.
1. If the wealthy were job creators, then we'd have jobs. They have wealth. Where are the jobs?
2. Cutting spending generally affects poor people who don't know where their next meal is going to come from. Any of the wealthy who have to pay a little more will probably still not worry about whether they'll have access to the basic necessities of life.
3. The Republicans and Tea Party people have been unusually cruel and fearful under President Obama and it makes me wonder what they hate more...that he's a Democrat, or that he's half black.
4. Where was all the right wing's fiscal responsibility talk during the George Bush years when he was spending left and right and starting wars? I think it's hypocritical to be outraged at this point.
There is plenty of analysis on the Internet, in newspapers, and on television. And there are many people who are more articulate and studied than I. I'll leave it to them.
I just want the historical record to show which side I'm on.
I'm on the side of Obama. He is a wonderful president during these times. He's holding up well. I wish he could be more progressive, but because of the right wingers he's been forced to compromise a lot.
In compromising, though, many of his programs and plans to solve the current economic woes have not been given the oomph they should have had. Not quite enough money and you can get near the top of the hill, but not to the peak, which means you roll back down again.
The Republicans have fought him at every turn. Their main goal is to see Obama out of office. The health of the United States of America makes no difference to them. They're the type of people who would cut off their noses to spite their face.
This process has been disturbing on so many levels there will probably be a thousand books written about it.
Where is the outcry from reasonable people?
Is there a commonality we all truly believe in that we can gather round?
Speaking for me...I don't know what to do. It's overwhelming.
It seems everywhere I turn there's a wrong that should be righted.
I want to go to the core of the problem and start working there.
But, where is that?
Sigh.
(Sometimes I think the core is clear air and clean water because we need both of those to survive as humans. However, even if we have clean air and clean water, if our hearts aren't filled with hope, or spirit, or love, then that's a problem too.)
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